On Your Six
by Bane7567
Summary: Having little to no trust for anyone, a young boy discovers, with unlikely allies in similar situations, the benefits of having a friend at your side.
1. Prologue: Henry and Silverlake

On your Six

_A/N In short, a simple story that sparked from a scene I created in my head. For those of you who are curious about the title, it's derived from Rhino's line from the movie, "I'm on your six." In the sense of, I've got your back._

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><p>The autumn sun slowly descended into the horizon, taking most of its warmth with it, spreading its final rays of light for the day across the small town of Silverlake. The temperature began its own descent as well, calling most of the close-knit town's citizens inside to their houses. Many saying their good-evenings to their multitude of neighbors, some including additional plans for meeting soon, others simply knowing they would meet again the following day. Silverlake was one of those types of towns, in which nearly everyone knew everyone else, from the next door neighbor, to the bagging employees at the grocery store. Everyone knew something about everyone else, whether it was a characteristic, or simply a first name. There were no unfamiliar faces, rivalries, or town rogues, and the town had no criminal record of any sort. The country community was, simply put, a large neighborhood in which all were neighbors, all were acquaintances, and all were friends.<p>

This was nearly the opposite case for Henry Doffen, who watched over the town from his desk in his room.

Henry knew virtually nothing about many, if not most, of the people of his town beyond his small neighborhood. And that was a very small amount of knowledge. He knew of his next door neighbors, a young married couple, the Karans, with a two year-old daughter who had recently learned the basics of walking, and on the other side, an older couple, the Nashes both children of whom had left for college. Across the street, there was a sweet middle aged woman, Miss Mae, who always seemed content with what she had. When half of her back porch burned down, she smiled that she had more room for her garden, remaining ever-optimistic. It almost seemed there were two main things that mattered to her, her yard, and her neighbors. She was kind to all, including Henry, and she was one of the few of the town who Henry actually socialized with. Henry would accompany his mother when visiting, and she would greet him warmly, often ask how school was going, and Henry would communicate back normally as he would to a friend-as she was a friend-which was a rare sight.

The entire town knew a little something about everyone, and while Henry knew little about them, they all knew the one thing about Henry. He was the opposite of social. Whether it was at school, or simply running an errand, Henry kept to himself. He had virtually no friends (with the exception of Miss Mae), and he showed no interest in having any. While there were other kids who would greet him and attempt to socialize, he would simply nod and move on. This was the case with anyone, and everyone he came across. Some of the kids at his school simply rested upon the conclusion that he had mental issues. Many others thought he was only shy, or it was just a phase he was going through. Some even thought he chose not to socialize a long time ago. Any one of these could be interpreted as correct, but the true reason was he had lost all faith in friendship, all faith in people in general. He had grown up in a far shadier city, in which his parents told him to stick close whenever outside and not speak to or trust anyone. But this was not his reason for being bias against trust. He had attempted to make a couple friends in his school when starting the third grade, but something seemed to go wrong with every friend, usually some sort of personal matter or accident (which was frequent in the area), and the first few of them seemed to place the blame of his shoulders, and cease to talk to or help him with anything, some even acted bitter towards him. Unfortunately, this continued for the next few friends he attempted to make, and with each one, his level of trust for others slowly decreased. Even when he moved to Silverlake, when his parents assured him things would be better, he still kept to himself both in school, and anywhere else, for fear his past would repeat itself. His parents could only look on and hope he would gradually re-accept trust in others. It was a fading hope.

As for the neighborhood, there was just one other neighbor who Henry knew anything about. The house only a few doors up the road, lived Mr. Forrester, an elderly man, who, to Henry's knowledge, was once a scientist. Henry himself hardly ever saw him, he seemed to remain in his house most days, what he was doing, remained a mystery. He thought he once saw his family on a holiday or two, but old man Forrester never ventured beyond his doorstep. Henry could only ponder about his background, what he did during the day, what he was like in his earlier days, or his present days, and why he would remain so cooped up in his house. Having never spoken to any of the other people of the town, he had no idea what the strange, and slightly creepy, man was like before his time. Again, he could only wonder.

Henry decided to dismiss his current thought train and head to the dinner table before his parents began to worry again. As he slowly exited his room, he wondered as he had done multiple times before if the tendency to keep to himself was the one quality he shared with that strange, isolated man on his block.

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><p><em>AN. I'll be publishing one more chapter after this one sometime during the holiday season, then I'll return my focus to Calico Returns._


	2. Chapter 1: Neighborly advice

Chapter 1: Neighborly advice

Flakes of snow gently fell to the ground, silently covering the small town of Silverlake, holding most of its inhabitants inside to the warmth of their small, cozy homes. Multicolored lights, strung across trees and windows, glowed brightly, illuminating the soft layers of snow spread across the front yards, roads and sidewalks. As beautiful, sparkling lights strung around pine trees glistened in the windows of the small cozy homes, with the families huddled around them, in addition to their fireplaces. For a small community, Silverlake spread Christmas time joy and spirit around more than any other country town. Carolers filled the air pleasantly in the central park with songs of joy and merriment. Most of the buildings' lights were out as the lights for decoration illuminated the town well.

All of which was impossible to ignore, even for Henry. While he enjoyed the festivities of the town as much as the next person, he often chose to enjoy it alone. During these times, he would take walks on his own throughout the town, cherishing the warm, radiant glow the lights and cheer the town gave, both in lights, and in feeling. But while did enjoy the season, Henry still chose to keep to himself, and never share this feeling with others. Which made his next decision seem rather unusual.

Henry stood in front of the town's only church, hearing the angelic voices of the practicing choir from inside. Henry had nothing against going to church, but he often feared on this particular night, there would be many others listening as well, and he was not looking for a social gathering. But, despite these thoughts, he drew closer to the voices of the church choir. At the moment, he didn't care who he might encounter, he simply felt the need to relax, and let his mind wander. Slowly entering inside the church building, he saw the dimly lit sanctuary was nearly empty, aside from the choir of mostly children, and only the few within the lines of pews who were listening. Henry felt a hint of relief as he made his way to one of the pews towards the rear of the room. He didn't look closer to see who else was in attendance, he only kept his focus on the choir. With this, he allowed himself to relax for once, and take in the Christmas hymns without worry or concern. For the first time in a long time, he didn't feel uncomfortable or shy in a public area, he felt calm as the choir's soothing notes warmed his senses. He let his mind wander. He looked around at the others in the sanctuary, wondering if they felt similar feelings in the presence of the music as well. He was thinking about the others of his town, having never spoken to them, he could only ponder how much they were alike. Actually, Henry was not that much different from most of the townsfolk, and not only those of his age. He enjoyed the peace and serenity the town provided, including the warm, quiet summer afternoons, the silent winter evenings. He enjoyed reading, walking throughout the town's park, and especially, the multiple forms of merriment of the holiday season, including the music. If there was one thing Henry Doffen enjoyed the most in his spare time, it was listening to music. Classical, Symphony, even the current songs of his day, he enjoyed it in any form. The only thing that put him apart from the rest of the people, was he chose to do these alone.

Just as his mind went over these things, his eyes came across one of the people sitting in the pews. Just as he left his stream of thought, the man turned around and looked directly at him. Henry felt a chill go down his spine as they made eye contact. He faced the choir once more, not looking again, but within his peripheral vision, he saw Mr. Forrester stand and approach his pew. His heart rate elevated, rapidly, to the point when he felt it would burst though his chest as Mr. Forrester took a seat in his pew near Henry. Henry was almost completely frozen at this point, he hadn't seen him in person before, and didn't dare to look over to see what he fully looked like. He only kept his focus on the choir, who had already began a new hymn, Silent Night. However, he could almost feel his gaze upon him like the rays of a heat lamp, and he knew he could not simply ignore it the entire evening. After only a few intense moments, he gave in to the pressure, and slowly turned his head to Mr. Forrester. His sight came across him and he saw his complete facial features. He had thick black and gray hair, which connected to his equally thick beard and mustache, he wore a brown winter coat, and had somewhat of a casual appearance to him. Not what he had pictured previously.

He kept his gaze on him for a few seconds further before Mr. Forrester finally turned his head towards him. Henry's first instinct was to immediately face the front once more, but he maintained eye contact with him. Mr. Forrester smiled and nodded to him. Henry returned a small nod as Mr. Forrester moved slightly closer to his seat. The only thing Henry could think of doing was only keep nodding and wait for some form of speech, which was, at the current point, inevitable. "Merry Christmas," Forrester said after only another line of the hymn, in a deeper tone than he expected.

Henry could only nod timidly in response. "Nice to see you," Mr. Forrester continued. "Especially here." Henry still remained silent and slowly turned towards the front again. "I was a little surprised, actually. I know you like being outside, but I wasn't sure if you'd take an interest in this sort of thing."

"Well, I do like choral music if it's...Christmas," Henry stated flatly.

Mr. Forrester smiled again, "I can understand that." Henry nodded once more and faced the front of the sanctuary. "Henry Doffen, right?" Henry nodded as he extended his hand. "Marcus Forrester. So, what brings you here tonight?"

Henry was almost hesitant to answer, "Well, Mr. Forrester, I..."

"You can call me Mark," he informed him.

"Okay...Mark," he answered nervously. "I was taking a walk, and I...I decided to listen here. Even though..." His voice trailed off.

"Even though there might be others here?" Mark asked. Henry nodded slowly. "Well, I'm glad you did. Listening to these songs, this entire season is even better if you have someone..." His own voice trailed off as well, looking down.

"To share it with," Henry finished.

"Exactly," he responded softly, facing the choir. "It's why I'm here, actually. I enjoy listening to the Christmas choir as well. But especially tonight, I came to hear my granddaughter." He pointed out to Henry the seven year-old girl with short, auburn hair, standing near the center of the choir group, singing clearly.

"You see her often?" Henry inquired, attempting to prolong the conversation.

"Well," Mark began. "Not...not as often as I'd like."

"I take it she lives far away?"

"Well, not too far. But..." Mark's voice left him again. "I just...don't really, stay in touch."

Henry nodded, now more comfortable with the conversation. "Well, if...it's any of my business, why not? Lots of work?"

Mark nodded slowly, which seemed to be their main form of communication. "In a way, yes. At least...that's what lead to it..."

Henry could tell he was no longer comfortable with the subject, but he still yearned to learn more about his neighbor. "Well, okay. You don't have to tell me, but..."

"It's alright," he responded. "I don't see her often, or remain in contact with her because...well, I just don't see them too often.

Henry was surprised, but only partially, that he hardly ever saw his own family. "Well, why not? I mean, why not go and visit sometimes?"

"I'm...worried," he stated. "Because, recently, I had...a disagreement with my daughter, regarding my work. Mainly the amount of it, and how it's keeping me from...doing anything else. And...it only got worse. We haven't spoken since."

"Well, why not just apologize? Even if it wasn't your fault."

Mark sighed softly, "I...just couldn't, in person, or by any other means."

"Why not? Just say you're sorry," Henry suggested."

"I know, it's easier than it seems, but...what if she doesn't want to talk? What if...the argument happens all over again?"

Henry connected this fear to his own nearly instantly. Fear that the past would repeat itself. A path he didn't want to return to. He soon realized how much he and Mr. Forrester actually had in common, remaining isolated to prevent any chance of a re-run of the past. "Well...maybe..." He wasn't entirely sure what else to suggest, being in a very similar situation. "You...could at least just give it a chance. I mean, how do you know it will happen again? You won't until you at least give it chance, or second chance. Just apologize, you don't have to say anything else."

Mark looked over at him with a look of curiosity, as well as admiration. "Alright," he said after a few moments of thought as the choir concluded Silent Night. "I'll give it a chance."

Henry managed a smile as well. "Okay." He glanced down at his watch, seeing it was nearly his designated time for him to return home. "I better be getting home, but I'll probably come back...eventually."

Mark nodded, "You should." As Henry exited the pew, he heard him say, "I understand you don't do too much with others yourself."

Henry stopped, but was not nervous, feeling much more comfortable and open with him now. "Yeah, I...I don't really...I like to be alone."

"Not sure about making new friends?" Mark asked, sensing what he really felt. Henry slowly nodded. "Well, at least you'll be giving it a second chance."

Henry was taken aback by this, while he felt it was what he was thinking the entire time. He had given Mark, the man who he had far more in common than he realized, the advice that he himself could be all he needed. "Merry Christmas." Mark said with a wide smile.

Henry managed another grin, "Merry Christmas."

With that, he exited the sanctuary, hundreds of thoughts still swarming in his head. How much he had in common with Mr. Forrester, what he had told him, and how it would work for him.

And perhaps, above all, how the same advice would work for himself. He thought of Mark continually, and how much he had interacted with him, how much they had spoken, and how much they were alike. But how similar were their situations? And their outcomes.

Once again, he could only wonder.


End file.
